Adirondack Park Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan
Adirondack Park Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan Steering Committee
Dan Kelting, Mark Malchoff, & Hilary Oles
This document is the final draft of an aquatic nuisance species (ANS) management plan for the six million acre Adirondack Park. The vision of this plan is to foster regional collaboration and coordination wherein the threat of aquatic nuisance species will be minimized and the vitality of the Adirondack Park's varied ecosystems and the socioeconomic prosperity of the people who live in the Park will be preserved.
The Adirondack Park was created in 1892 by the State of New York, and is the largest publicly protected area in the contiguous United States. With globally unique wetlands, thousands of lakes and ponds, and over 30,000 miles of rivers and streams the aquatic resources of the Adirondack Park are extensive and diverse and provide a range of ecosystem services for both residents and visitors. There are multiple justifications for focusing resources on saving and protecting this special place from the environmental and socioeconomic threats of ANS. The justification for ANS management is most clear from a socioeconomic perspective, as the Adirondack Park’s aquatic resources help form the backbone of the regional economy. Visitors expend over $1.2 billion dollars annually and tourism provides employment for over 26,000 residents. Clean and abundant water is a main ingredient of the tourism package that attracts visitors to the Adirondack Park, as over 85 percent of visitors’ desire waterside lodging and approximately 70 percent want to swim, fish, or boat while visiting the Adirondacks. The proliferation of ANS may be the greatest regional threat to water quality, ecosystem health, and the economy of the Adirondacks. One example of an invading aquatic plant is Eurasian watermilfoil, which has been identified in many lakes where it is crowding out native species and forming dense stands that impede recreational activities such as fishing, boating and swimming. Impacts of ANS in the Adirondack Park will continue to increase if current populations of ANS are left unchecked and new species of ANS enter the Park. If action is taken quickly, it may be possible to limit the spread of ANS and protect the ecologic and socioeconomic vitality of the Adirondacks.
The Adirondack Park Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan (the Plan) was drafted to facilitate the coordination of ANS management efforts throughout the Park. The Plan was drafted with close attention to the New York State ANS Management Plan. The Plan also complements ANS efforts already underway in the eastern portion of the Park as part of the Lake Champlain Basin ANS Management Plan and is intended to coordinate closely with the LCBP to help fulfill its ANS management objectives. The Plan identifies ANS problems and concerns and recommends specific objectives, strategies, and actions to be undertaken to manage aquatic nuisance species within the Park. The objectives, strategies, and actions described in Section V of the Plan specifically address the primary strategic ANS management approaches articulated by the New York State Invasive Species Task Force: prevention, education, early detection, rapid response, and control/management.
The goals of the Adirondack Park Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan are to:
Prevent new introductions of ANS into waters of the Adirondack Park.
Limit the spread of established populations of ANS into uninfested waters of the Adirondack Park.
Abate negative ecological, socioeconomic, and public health and safety impacts resulting from infestations of ANS within the Adirondack Park.
